Pirelli hint at new pit stop rules

Pirelli is apparently open to the idea of making a second stop during a race mandatory. The Italian tyre manufacturer is F1's sole tyre supplier and after a frustrating 2018 season in relation to strategy, could be set to advocate for a rule change in the future.

In 2018, the prevalence of one-stop strategies based on countless race simulations by the teams meant that drivers were saving tyres rather than pushing to the limit, ensuring they could make the minimal amount of pitstops ensuring they lose the least amount of time in the pits.

According to Pirelli head of motorsports Mario Isola, the company is open to a change that would see the rules be changed from requiring drivers to make a single pitstop during a race to switch compound to two pitstops.

Speaking to RaceFans, Isola admitted that there is no clear solution to the problem currently but that a change in the future could be agreed upon if there was enough support.

“I’m not sure it’s the right solution because there is the big risk that everybody stops on the same lap, or very close, so basically you are just generating shorter stints where probably drivers can push more.

“They can use the softest available compound because the stints are shorter but there is no variation in the strategies.

“This doesn’t mean that it is a worse situation. It could be good, we don’t know. We asked the teams to make some simulations to understand how they can react to a change of regulation.

“For me that’s an important point. Any time there is an idea before trying to implement the idea it is very useful that we go back to the teams and we tell them try to make a simulation with these rules and see what happens.

“This is because sometimes we believe that we have a very good idea and we discover it is not.”